Atros x Linneus - Coffee Break
by Rae'vyn Phiar
Summary: Xanthe has been holed up in his office for far too long so Linneus decides to bring him coffee and talk. My first Teahosue Piece! Thanks for reading, reviewing, faving, and following! Rated M for KISSING AND TEAHOUSE REFERENCES (AKA MERCUTIO)!


_First piece for Teahouse! Hope you like it!_

 _Thanks for reading, reviewing, faving, and following! Please tell your friends about my content if you liked it, it may help me to find new ideas for prompts if they suggest anything! Also, please review! Anything, and I mean_ _ **anything**_ _, helps me out! And please ask for whatever you want here; I won't judge! Thanks again!_

 _Rated M for KISSES AND SLIGHT WHOREHOUSE REFERENCES!And Mercutio… Yeah…_

 **Atros x Linneus – Coffee Break**

The smell of brewing coffee was pleasantly drifting through the kitchen, Linneus leaning against the counter by the old-fashioned coffee maker, watching it with a faint smile. Flicking a few pale pink strands out of his eyes, he looked to the stove, where a pot of water was heating up for his tea, never having been one for coffee himself. It would be nice, he supposed, since Atros, rather Xanthe, was so busy, to maybe just…

He sighed, closing his brilliant blue eyes in thought. It would be so easy for the other courtesans to mistake a little thing like this for something else entirely. It's not like they weren't, but… Axis would no doubt have something to say if he saw the slender man walking to the office with coffee, tea, and shortbreads. Claret and Rory would probably side with him, saying that it was nothing more than just being nice and enjoying the other's company. Mercutio… Well… He would probably just smile strangely.

But he didn't much care for those who would judge or be on his side, as it only mattered what he thought and what he knew Xanthe would think about it. He smiled a bit bigger. The man knew what the owner of the house would think; he was exhausted, and would most likely care to take a bit of a break, no matter how many times he said he didn't want one.

Linneus gazed at the floor for a bit until he heard the pot of water bubbling on its burner, picking it up and letting it cool down for a little while before pouring it over crumbled tea leaves in a small strainer over a teapot. He looked at the coffee maker, now pouring a stream of the steaming, deep brown liquid.

As he assembled the various items on the shiny silver tray he was using, he felt nervousness and a bit of fear rise up inside of him. What if Xanthe was too busy and too stressed and yelled at him or threw something or-? He shook his head to rid himself of those poisonous thoughts. Atros almost always found an excuse, no matter how stupid-sounding, to spend time with him.

The gold bangles on his wrists jingled as they slid up his arms a little, his flat shoes barely making a sound on the stairs as he walked up them and down various hallways. He reached the door a bit faster than he would've liked, attributing the pace from a bit of butterfly-in-the-stomach-causing excitement. Moving the tray to one arm, he knocked on the wooden door, the sound seeming far too loud in the hallway.

"Come in," was the reply, and Linneus grew a bit more nervous. Xanthe sounded a bit impatient, a bit overtired, and much too annoyed. Nevertheless, he opened the door and put on a small smile. He looked far too tired to even be working, dark bags under his eyes that showed his lack of sleep or need thereof from a long day. Papers were scattered not only on his desk, but strewn all over that half of the room, his garbage can overflowing with crumpled documents.

The darker-haired man looked a bit lighter as his eyes met the others. "Oh, it's you…" His eyes closed, a furrow coming into shape between his brows as he sighed, leaning back in his office chair. "I should've known…"

"Why?" Linneus set the tray down in the seat of one of the two brown chairs facing the desk, the one that wasn't overflowing with papers. Granted, he'd lost any hope of really sitting down for conversation, but he'd be alright.

Xanthe looked at him, his golden eyes calm and smooth, a hint of a smile on his lips. "You've always been able to pick up on whenever people, usually me, are stressed-out beyond their limits. And you've always been ready to try to help, in whatever way you're able to." He sat up a bit straighter in his chair and looked at the tray. "Do I smell coffee?"

Linneus nodded, pouring out a draught of the liquid into a mug and handing it to the other man with a soft glance. There was an audible sigh that filled the room when the man took a drink, the pink-haired courtesan holding in a chuckle. "Thank you." The slender man nodded and leaned against the paper-laden chair, holding a cup of tea in both hands. Xanthe looked at him, his gaze unwavering as the other felt him staring.

"What is it?" He hated the way his voice grew softer, strained as his nervousness took over, his eyes darting from Xanthe's own to the pastel cuffs of his pants. His fingertips drummed on the rim of his cup, not wanting to move much else. He didn't even want to speak.

"I really…" Linneus looked back, but saw the other's gaze drift down, his eyes grow a bit somber. The mug he held made a light tap on the wooden surface of his desk. He cleared his throat softly before speaking again. "I really appreciate this…"

The pink-haired man knew just how to act in this scenario, knowing that there was much more behind those simple little words but wanting to have him say them out loud rather than have there be an understanding that would be left unsaid. He shrugged and smiled lightly. "For coffee? It's not that difficult, really. You could have anyone else in the house do it-"

"Not just that, Linneus. You know what I mean." His voice had grown hard, impatient once more. Xanthe then sighed. "Sorry… I'm just tired and I don't want to explain things that we both already know…" The other's eyes went to the tray across from him, nodding slightly. The silence grew for a time until the sound of moving fabric caught Linneus' attention. He didn't have time to comprehend what was going on before he was caught in a light embrace by the other, feeling warmth from both Xanthe's form and his own surprise fill him.

His hands went automatically to wrap about the darker-haired man's shoulders, burying his head into Xanthe's chest in order not to have to meet his eyes before he had to. "Linneus…" the taller man breathed, the hand not wrapped about his waist lightly stroking his hair. "You don't really know how much I…" He abruptly stopped talking, letting his words trail off.

"What?" the other's voice replied, a slight pleading tone in that word. "Tell me…" The smaller man felt the hand at his hair move to his chin, Xanthe leaning away a little to meet his eyes with a smile.

"You really don't know how much I care about you, Linneus…" The slender courtesan couldn't help it, standing up a bit straighter and meeting the other's lips in a warm, calm kiss, feeling him lean into the touch almost immediately. Linneus didn't detect any sort of need from the other man other than just this sort of thing, just warmth and understanding and relaxation, no need for frenzied kisses or actions.

They broke apart only to breathe, not moving from their standing spot in the office, or to murmur things that neither remembered when it was all over. Not even one piece of gold jewelry was discarded, clothes out of the question.

A knock on the closed door made them both jump, breaking the kiss and having them both take a step away from each other. Linneus fared much better at getting rid of the blush in his cheeks, the other turning back toward his desk to cope with the color. Claret opened the door, popping her head in.

"There you are, Linneus!" She smiled a little. "Gilder is here to see you again." A twinge of tightness twisted in the pink-haired man's heart, looking at Xanthe with a gaze of pain and apology before following the somewhat plump, short girl out to the hall. Claret babbled on about trivial things, the only thing the man really catching the matter of Mercutio stealing her heels again for a client.

Xanthe… It definitely wasn't just a secret little bout of office shenanigans anymore, he'd made it clear when his kisses weren't too fast, greedy… What was stopping him from making the necessary changes to stop his role as a slave to those with money…? What was his motive for making his heart hurt…?


End file.
